Perinatal outcomes after second trimester detection of amniotic fluid viral genome in asymptomatic patients.
OBJECTIVE
Symptomatic fetal viral infection can affect placental and fetal development and may lead to non-immune hydrops or fetal death. All infections are not detectable by clinical history or ultrasound and a background positivity rate exists in asymptomatic patients. We investigated if intraamniotic presence of viral genome at the time of genetic amniocentesis in asypmtomatic patients affects perinatal outcome.


METHODS
Six-hundred and eighty-six pregnancies referred for second trimester genetic amniocentesis with a normal ultrasound and fetal karyotype had amniotic fluid multiplex polymerase chain reaction for adeno-, cytomegalo-, Ebstein-Barr-, entero- and parvovirus. Forty asymptomatic patients that were positive for viral genome were matched 2:1 with negative controls. Perinatal outcomes were compared between these groups.


RESULTS
Pregnancy complications and perinatal outcomes were similar in the two groups.


CONCLUSIONS
Asymptomatic fetal viral infection at the time of second trimester amniocentesis does not increase the risk for adverse perinatal outcome.
Miller
Jena L
JL
Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
Harman
Christopher
C
Weiner
Carl
C
Baschat
Ahmet A
AA
D000256:Adenoviridae / Q000235:genetics; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000649:Amniocentesis; D000653:Amniotic Fluid / Q000821:virology*; D003587:Cytomegalovirus / Q000235:genetics; D004770:Enterovirus / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D005315:Fetal Diseases / Q000821:virology*; D005814:Genes, Viral; D005865:Gestational Age; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D017992:Parvovirus / Q000235:genetics; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*